Google imagines a ChromePhone

ChromeOS and Android are two very distinct operating systems. One has taken the mobile world by storm, while the other can best be described as a web-centric work in progress.

However, both are characterized by a distinct lack of bloat, even if tablet and smartphone manufacturers insist on loading their Android devices with unneeded extras. Of course, there is always the pure vanilla goodness of AOSP for Android purists, but I digress.

Currently, ChromeOS is coded to power laptops (Chromebook) and PCs (Chomebox). But what if ChromeOS was loaded on a smartphone? What would it look and feel like?

Interestingly enough, a Google employee by the name of Zach Alcorn recently posted a basic mock-up of what Chrome OS running on a smartphone could potentially look like.

"This still needs some work, but I liked the direction it was going and decided to share it with you all," Alcorn wrote in a Google+ post. "What do you think? I'd love to see an Android skin that emulates this look."

Themes aside, it is definitely to think about the two operating systems converging at some point in the future. Admittedly, such a scenario does seem somewhat unlikely, as the rather extensive Android ecosystem is based on apps that are (locally) loaded onto smartphones and tablets.

Nevertheless, one can't help but wonder what such a mashup would look like, so kudos to Zach Alcorn for his unofficial rendering. It certainly got us thinking.